Irresistible Tahini Sauce
"I'll have some vegetables with my sauce"
Says me. All the time.
I'm a big fan of sauces, particularly because I love my vegetables and buddha bowls and it's such an easy way to spice up a meal. This one, and my Spicy Peanut Sauce (recipe coming soon), are my two favourite go-to's that you can almost always find in my fridge.
Bonus: the ingredients are staples in my fridge, so it's very likely that I have all the ingredients on hand whenever a hankering for this tahini sauce swoops in. Double bonus: it's really quick to make.
Vegan. Gluten Free. Whole Foods Based. Refined Sugar Free.
This is a great sauce to make if:
- you're trying to eat more vegetables and are getting bored with how to prepare them;
- you're low on iron and want a great recipe that is iron packed (sesame seeds) and plant-based;
- you're looking for delicious, creamy sauces that are dairy free.
Ingredients
- 1/3 cup red onion, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/2 cup sesame seeds or tahini paste*
- 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1/2 cup water or liquid from de-glazing the pan
- juice of 1 lemon
- 3 tbsp gluten-free tamari
- 2 tbsp maple syrup
- 2 tsp sesame oil
Directions
In a small pan, fry onion and garlic on medium with a small amount of oil for 7 minutes, or until cooked thoroughly.
While the onion and garlic are cooking, combine the rest of the ingredients in a blender. Once the onions and garlic are done, add them to the blender as well. While the pan from frying is still hot, add 3/4 cup of water to deglaze the pan and then measure 1/2 cup of that onion-garlic flavoured liquid to add to the blender.
Blend all the ingredients together until smooth.
This makes approximately 2 cups of sauce that is quite thick. If you prefer a thinner consistency, you can try adding more water from deglazing the pan.
Store in a sealed container in the fridge for up to a week (if you can make it last that long).
*Note: if you don't have a powerful blender such as a Vitamix, I'd recommend using tahini paste rather than sesame seeds. You want the final product to be smooth, so your blender must be able to grind seeds to a paste. The benefit of using the seeds is that it's more cost effective, but otherwise the taste is the same.